The vehicle of choice for a lot of people lately seems to be crossovers, cute-utilities, whatever you want to call them…basically, they are the modern interpretation of the 1980s Honda Civic Wagovan. They have plenty of interior room for a compact car, have a useable cargo area, and they are as delightful to drive as a $500 Geo. Not since the windowless white van has there been a better form of rolling birth control. We get that owning a multipurpose vehicle is a benefit, especially when owning multiple vehicles is simply out of the question, but disregarding style, presence and to be blunt, a bit of masculinity for the sake of driving a Toyota RAV4 is just sorry.
For many years, the Chevrolet El Camino was the multipurpose vehicle of choice. Trucks weren’t the overloaded luxury tanks they are now, they were tools with taillights. Sport utility vehicles were trucks with bed caps from the factory, and the closest thing to a crossover vehicle was the Subaru Leone wagon. The El Camino had the usefulness of a full-frame pickup, but the driving characteristics of the Chevrolet Chevelle. How could you lose? Ok, so there isn’t a backseat. There isn’t an airbag, either. If you wanted a backseat and cargo space, Chevrolet made this neat vehicle called a Chevelle station wagon! With the El Camino, you got it all…no station wagon stigma, cargo capacity, looks and performance. Why these vehicles aren’t more popular, we’ll never understand.
So let’s go shopping with that five thousand dollars that is currently burning a hole in your pocket. Up for sale here is a 1973 El Camino for $4,000. The price is right, and the pictures suggest a pretty decent vehicle that looks to have been recently resprayed in a very nice white and blue scheme. That may partially be due to the 1976 nose clip on the car, but hey, for four grand, being perfect isn’t going to be in the cards. That being said, however, from the looks of this Elky, we’d be rushing over to look at it in person with cash in hand. This might be the biggest A-body, but that frame underpinned cars from the 1973 Chevelle to the 1996 Impala SS…you’d better believe that it’s durable, and it will hold up to 90% of whatever you’d use a pickup for. It is difficult to screw up with a small block Chevy/automatic transmission combination, and Cragar SS/T wheels on white letter tires lend a nice classic touch. Congratulations, a thousand dollars left over and a classic ride that will hold up well.
Craigslist Link: 1973 Chevrolet El Camino
Interesting front end combo..74 grille,and 76-77 lights on a 73 model..but it doesnt look bad..nice wheels too 🙂
If me mum’s knickers smelled like the boot of a 70’s Leyland from Tottenham, then I’d still burn this hunk of rubbish! No mewling bobbinheads at this pub. I’d scrub me arse first.